Workshop held for Worcester County Comprehensive plan
By Bob Adair
On April 26, 2005 Sandy Coyman, director of the Worcester County Comprehensive Planning Department, presented information on the latest draft of the county comprehensive (comp) plan during a workshop held at the Ocean Pines library.

The Worcester County Planning Commission developed a draft of the new comp plan earlier this year. The last major rework of this document took place in 1989, with an update in 1997.
The initial plan was based on several premises such as: 1) The development focus would be on the northeast quadrant of the county; 2) Conflict would exist between agriculture (open spaces) and development; 3) Developers would have to bear the cost of development; 4) The population increase would be close to 100 percent, with a large number being retirees; 5) Farming would be preserved; and 6) The economy would be based on tourism, economic development and farming.  The goal of the plan was to balance population growth, protection of natural resources and availability of public facilities.

The goals of the 2005 comp plan, in essence, are to maintain the rural and coastal character of the region, protect the natural resources in the area and accommodate planned growth in the county. Over the years the initial premises were found to be valid but several changes have been noted.

The population growth did occur in the northern end of the county.  The vicinity of Ocean Pines increased from 4,250 dwellings in 1990 to 10,496 in 2000, an increase of 146 percent. During the same period Pocomoke grew by 4.5 percent and Snow Hill increased by 8.6 percent. The increased population consisted of retirees with substantial capital to invest in the community.
This influx caused the growth areas identified in the comp plan to approach full capacity.  Growth areas can be associated with established communities such as Snow Hill and Pocomoke or they can be areas designated in the plan for planned growth of a new community outside the incorporated areas.

The county transportation network now includes several "impacted roads." These are routes the Maryland Department of Transportation has identified as approaching gridlock or at gridlock status, based upon a statewide rating system.
Since the initial comp plan several new laws and programs have affected the growth planning in the county.  Fifteen regulations or programs such as the Critical Bays law now have an impact on the potential areas that could have been considered for growth or expansion.  The Critical Bay regulation alone affects all property within 1,000 feet of tidal waters throughout the county.
Environmental regulations such as the TMDLs (Total Maximum Daily Load) governing the amount of nutrients allowed in the various bays have had an impact on the issuing of building permits.

The influx of capital into the region has caused the price of housing to increase significantly, which has caused a shortage of available housing for those in the mid to lower income ranges.  This issue must be considered critical because the economic development of the region depends on these workers.

Over the years the advance in technology and the expanded information base has improved the county's ability to evaluate alternatives.  This includes the ability to project the needs created by certain growth levels. The current draft comp plan is using a figure of 18,000 additional residents over the next few years with an associated demand for 7,000 to 8,000 houses.  This points to a need to identify about 3,200 acres for planned growth.

When looking for suitable terrain for growth areas, certain criteria are used.  These include the following:  1) The area should be comprised of 100-acre parcels; 2) It must avoid wetlands, floodplains and contiguous forests as much as possible; 3) It must be outside any aquifer recharge area; and 4) The growth area must be located near employment opportunities and services, to include a transportation network and water and sewer services.

 The plan includes several areas of potential growth.  These include areas near Showell, a sizable area north of Berlin, another area to the immediate south of Snow Hill and some growth areas around Pocomoke. Newark also has space for growth. It has a water and sewer system than is underused and therefore, more costly to the current users than other systems in the county.
In addition to the growth areas the plan identifies other land categories such as the green (green infrastructure), agriculture, existing residential areas, villages, commercial centers and industry sites. 

The plan identifies a viable combination of these categories to handle the future growth while meeting all the other criteria. The comp plan is still in draft form and will be the subject of two public hearings on May 10, 2005, at 6:30 p.m. in the Pocomoke High School auditorium and on May 12, 2005, at 6:30 at the Stephen Decatur Middle School.